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We've folded our blog into our main web site! Don't worry, we're still around for all your Japanese street fashion needs - in fact, we're only growing! For all new information, please visit us at https://www.tokyorebel.com and click on the blog/news link.

Saturday, March 20, 2010

Announcing the first ever Tokyo Rebel Fashion Photo contest! Send us your photos and win prizes! All entrants - winning or not - will receive a one-time 10% off coupon code to our store! Please read the instructions below carefully.

What you can win: $250 in merchandise from Tokyo Rebel, and potentially becoming the new face of our store.Who it's open to: Everyone, worldwide.When the submission period ends: April 11.

Submissions are currently being posted to our photo gallery as we receive them!

There are a lot of fashion contests around. So what's different about ours? Three things!

#1. Misako and Akira. We’re excited to have two trend-setting style icons from the Japanese street fashion industry partnering with us to judge this contest. Misako and Akira regularly appear together in KERA and the Gothic & Lolita Bible. You also know Misako as one of the three official Japanese kawaii ambassadors and kawaii producer of Gothic & Lolita Ensemble, while Akira’s free time is spent recording and performing with her indie rock band DISACODE.

In English: “I am soooo looking forward to seeing your pictures of you wearing kawaii Lolita fashion like a doll. Good luck in the contest.”

Akira: 人のコーディネート見るの好きなんで皆さんがどんなコーディデートをするのか凄く楽しみです。

In English: “I love to see other people's coordinate, so I'm looking forward to seeing yours soon.”

#2. Big prizes! Two winners – one each in the Lolita and punk/rock categories - will walk away with $250 worth of merchandise from Tokyo Rebel, plus the chance to be the new face of our store, with the photo you submit appearing on flyers, in print ads, and more! (Don’t enter if you’re shy!) You may also get additional modeling or photography work from us in the future.

In addition, two runners-up in each category will get surprise prizes! These prizes are a late addition and are TBD (they'll be much smaller than the grand prize).

#3. This is a photo contest, not just a fashion or modeling contest. We don't just want the best outfits, we want the best photos too. We know some of you already have some great photos sitting around – submit them! Or take new ones if you like. We’re looking for all-around visual creativity and quality worthy of representing both our store and Japanese street fashion, not cell phone photos of people standing in a room. We want to see these fashion styles being put to good use! Do your best for Misako and Akira! We’ll credit both photographers and models – it’s up to you how to split the winnings.

WHO CAN ENTER
Anyone! This is a global contest, and is open to guys and girls, young and old. Minors must have a parent sign this model release form and either scan/email or fax it back to us.

REQUIREMENTS/JUDGING CRITERIA

You must be wearing any genre in the following categories: Lolita or Japanese punk/rock fashion. Gothic is of course accepted as well; which broad category it'd be in really depends on the look.

You must have permission to submit your photo(s) from either the photographer or model (whichever one you aren’t). Entrants may be asked to send us verification of this at any time, and winners will not be crowned without it.

You’ll submit a medium-res version of your photo (approximately 1200 pixels wide), but you must possess a high-res version in case you win (8 megapixels or higher).

Photos will be judged on quality of fashion coordination, technical elements of the photo, creativity and setting. Please don’t take it personally if you don’t win, there may just have been something about the photo itself that wasn’t right for this contest.

SUBMISSION AND JUDGING PROCESS

1. Email us a medium-resolution (approximately 1200 pixels wide) version of your photo(s) in .jpg format with both the model’s and photographer’s name and the model’s age to info@tokyorebel.com with the subject line “Photo contest entry”. Once we verify that your entry meets the requirements, we’ll email you a single-use 10% off coupon code!

2. Important! We need to be able to verify that you’re not submitting a photo of somebody else without their permission, since we will be displaying submissions in our photo gallery. If you’re the model, please submit a second "proof pic" (can be a cell phone photo) of yourself with your face clearly visible together with a display of our web site on your computer screen. If you’re the photographer, please submit a signed model release form with your photo(s) (can be a scanned document).

3. The submission period will close on Sunday, April 11 at 10PM EDT. The first round of judging will be conducted by us (Tokyo Rebel) and you! (In the form of photo ratings in our gallery). We will narrow the entries down to a maximum of 30 per category, and we will then send those to Misako and Akira.

4. Misako and Akira will select five to seven finalists in each category, and together we will then select two winners (one in each category) plus two runners-up per category. We expect to crown the winners on or before April 30.

FAQ - these are questions we've gotten by email since the contest has started:

Q: Can I submit more than one photo?

A: Yes, but only one photo per category may actually be entered into the contest and sent to Misako and Akira. We’ll pick the best one you submit.

Q: Does that mean I can enter in both categories?

A: Yes, if you wear both fashion styles. You can’t enter the same photos wearing the same outfit in two categories; they need to be distinctly different.

Q: Do I need to be wearing something I bought from your store in my photos?

A: No, it can be anything as long as it's one of the categories of Japanese street fashion we listed above. We want the best photos, even if you got the clothes elsewhere and even if you're wearing brands we don't even carry. That said, the winner is going to potentially represent our store, so if we have two great photos that we're deciding between for the winner, then what the person's specifically wearing could break the tie.

Q: Do I need to be wearing Japanese brands to enter?

A: Not to enter, but it's going to make a difference in the judging later on. It would be a little strange given what this contest is about if the winner wasn't wearing any Japanese brands :) But you can enter without any Japanese brands, and you might still be seen by Misako or Akira.

Q: Does it matter if I’ve Photoshopped my photos?

A: Not really, although it’s just not going to help you if your photo looks too unnatural or fake, strictly on a technical and creative level. Photoshop is fine if you think it really enhances your photo. Just remember that anything you do to your photos is going to be judged along with everything else.

Q: How important are the photo ratings in the gallery?

A: It's helpful to see what people respond to, but at the same time those ratings are easy to game. We're not dumb, we know people are going to vote down photos they think of as competitors, and we know others are going to run campaigns to get all their friends to vote for them :)

So the photo ratings are not the final word on quality. Misako, Akira, and we are.

Q: I submitted a bunch of photos and I don't like the one you chose. Can you change it?

A: Yes, but it's not gonna help you :)

We picked the one we liked best the first time. Changing it will only reduce your chances of winning. Please submit only photos you would be comfortable having in the contest.

Upcoming Order Schedule

The following is our approximate schedule for future orders we plan to place with our brands, subject to change at any time. If you are interested in special ordering an item, you can use this as a guide for when to order. We recommend ordering 1-2 weeks in advance. Please email us to start a special order.